Teel Time: Forecasting the Virginia-Virginia Tech basketball rematch

Virginia Tech was better than Virginia last basketball season. But the Cavaliers beat the Hokies twice, once without Mike Scott.

Virginia is the better team this year, but the Hokies edged the Cavaliers in Charlottesville last month 47-45, Virginia’s lone home loss. Can Tech complete the regular-season sweep Tuesday in Blacksburg?

* Scott, the Cavaliers’ power forward and a (the?) leading candidate for ACC Player of the Year, attempted just nine shots in the first meeting. Limited possessions or not, he needs more touches and shots Tuesday.

The Hokies held Scott to 10 points, his lowest output in the last 13 contests – Scott averages 16.3 points and 8.3 rebounds in his last six games against Tech. But Victor Davila was a big part of that defensive effort in January, and he will miss the rematch with a groin injury.

“He's got a great physical presence about him,” Georgia Tech coach Brian Gregory said of Davila, “and he's a kid, too, that as you watch, is really developing. There have been times where they have gone to him in crucial situations and he's scored some big points for them.

“But … I think those young, big kids they have got are going to be good. And they played pretty good. They had some big baskets for them.”

* Indeed, the Hokies survived the Yellow Jackets on Saturday, 74-73 in overtime, thanks to a balanced offense that saw eight players score at least five points. Virginia Tech needs similar performances Tuesday.

Cadarian Raines and C.J. Barksdale were particularly effective in the low post, combining for 21 points, more than double their norm. The oft-injured Raines was more fluid than in the past, with up-and-under moves and the ability to shoot with either hand.

* The Hokies and Cavaliers have met nine times in the last five seasons with an aggregate score of 573-all. Don’t ask how or why I calculated said stat. Tech, by the way, has won six of those nine.

* Virginia Tech committed a season-low five turnovers against Georgia Tech, one after halftime.

* The Hokies have won three straight home games – Clemson, Boston College and Georgia Tech – by a combined four points. Each was decided on the final possession.

Also, Virginia Tech has played three consecutive one-point games, beating Boston College, losing at Florida State and defeating Georgia Tech.

* Maryland shot 26.9 percent in Saturday’s 71-44 loss at Virginia. Measured by shooting percentage, that’s the Cavaliers’ best defensive effort against an ACC opponent in Tony Bennett’s three seasons as head coach.

* Virginia shot a season-low 32.6 percent against Virginia Tech and missed 13-of-14 threes. The 47 points the Cavaliers yielded that night were the fewest they’ve allowed in a loss since their infamous 1982 ACC tournament final against North Carolina.